Preschool Proposed for Historic House Draws Passionate Support, Opposition

Oct 16, 2019 at 6:01 pm

A genteel battle of ideas played out Tuesday morning as Lakeland’s planning board pondered the best use for a large and historic home in the South Lake Morton neighborhood.

Both sides were represented by articulate speakers who spoke passionately about whether the Planning and Zoning Board should allow a preschool at the Deen House, a 1912-era, 6,736-square-foot mansion at the corner of Frank Lloyd Wright Way and Success Avenue. More

Neighborhoods/ Schools

FSC’s Roberts Academy Seeks Approval to Expand

Oct 7, 2019 at 7:00 am

Florida Southern College is planning to demolish a house at Frank Lloyd Wright Way and Hollingsworth Road to build a two-story middle school as part of the Roberts Academy, a private lab school for children with dyslexia. More

Neighborhoods/ Schools

Couple Plans Preschool at the Dean House

Oct 7, 2019 at 6:45 am The Ledger

A young Lakeland couple wants to buy the landmark Deen House at Frank Lloyd Wright Way and Success Avenue and turn it into a Montessori-based preschool serving up to 70 students. They answer neighborhood queueing concerns by saying that parents will park behind the house. The Lakeland Planning & Zoning Board considers a conditional use permit allowing the school on Oct. 15.
ALSO IN THE MORNING PAPER: Mister Central Florida, a fund-raiser for Central Florida Speech and Hearing Center, takes place Oct. 17 at 5:30 p.m. | Learn more

Health/ Neighborhoods

WFLA Reports Question State Radiation Monitoring at Oakbridge, Grasslands

Oct 3, 2019 at 9:16 pm

News Channel 8 aired investigative stories today and yesterday following up a lawsuit by homeowners at south Lakeland’s large Oakbridge and Grasslands communities. They report:

The Florida Department of Health’s environmental administrator admitted under oath that the department hasn’t monitored radiation levels at reclaimed phosphate mines in about five years.
A lawyer for the homeowners suing the subdivision developers over radiation levels claims state regulars used the wrong handheld devices to monitor radiation before declaring there were no health risks.

A & E/ Neighborhoods

Dragon Sculpture Emerges on Dixieland Alley

Sep 16, 2019 at 10:16 am

It hasn’t been long since a run-down house was demolished along an alley in Dixieland. Developer Gregory Fancelli plans to place some two-story apartments there eventually. But for now, it’s home to a 30-foot long dragon, Dixieland’s newest resident. More

Neighborhoods

Homes for Working Families Planned for ‘The States’

Aug 17, 2019 at 8:31 am News Channel 8

With the help of Sheriff Grady Judd, crews for Elite Site Solutions and Arizona Holdings have begun demolishing dilapidated trailers to make way for new low-cost housing. Son-and-father developers Chad and Jim Myers plan to place rent-to-own homes along Arizona, Colorado and Idaho avenues in an area known as “The States” (south of Main Street and several blocks west of Combee Road) that had been a haven for criminals, Judd said.
ALSO: Ledger coverage | photo gallery | video: Judd interview

Neighborhoods/ Transportation

Work Under Cleveland Heights Blvd. Extended Two Weeks

Aug 8, 2019 at 12:46 pm

The city of Lakeland had hoped to finish a project disrupting traffic on Cleveland Heights Boulevard before the start of classes Monday at nearby Carlton Palmore Elementary School. But officials said today that recent rains have delayed completion of the project by about two weeks. More

Neighborhoods

Seminole Tribe Planning Rural Housing Near Lakeland

Aug 6, 2019 at 4:52 pm

The Seminole Tribe of Florida is planning a housing development for its members on an 843-acre, rural tract northeast of Lakeland. Initially 50 single-family homes are planned for the acreage on the east side of Moore Road about a half-mile north of Old Polk City Road. More

Events/ Neighborhoods

National Night Out: 62 Local Sites Host Events Tonight

Aug 6, 2019 at 8:12 am

National Night Out events all over town tonight are designed to strengthen ties between neighborhoods and law enforcement.
✓ More info: https://t.co/EIvbnl7r1L
✓ List of events: https://t.co/8YwY7Mz5wB pic.twitter.com/voT6nXVPKG

— Lkld Now (@LkldNow) August 6, 2019

Activism/ Neighborhoods

Buffalo Soldier Park Advocate Hints at Merged Names

Jul 15, 2019 at 11:22 pm

Dressed in the uniform of an 1898 U.S. Army cavalry soldier, Richard Wilder came to today’s City Commission meeting with a simple request: Promote Lakeland tourism and pride by naming a park between Lake Wire and Florida Avenue after the Buffalo Soldiers who camped along the lake 121 years ago. More